Two weeks after joining Allegro, a new training programme for Associate Medical Writers within Ashfield Healthcare Communications (AHC), I feel privileged to be part of this new initiative and excited by this new chapter in my career.

On my first day, I experienced none of the normal new-job apprehension. The other 14 new recruits and I were already friends after meeting at our Assessment Centre, a get-to-know-you lunch and the AHC Christmas party, and so we could chat properly instead of making nervous small talk. These events had also provided an opportunity to meet and socialise with our line managers and other key people within the business, and therefore I felt relaxed and comfortable. I’d had plenty of opportunities to ask questions about what we would be doing, and we’d all been sent some small details that make a first day easier – what to bring, what to wear, where to go, what to do if delayed – and so I knew exactly what to expect.

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Learn more about Sam Bestall, who has been working as an Associate Medical Writer for Watermeadow Medical, an Ashfield Healthcare Communications agency, for 6 months [Learn more on Ashfield Healthcare Communications’s company Blog… ]

Lucy Hooper, Client Services Manager at Adelphi Communications, reflects on three years in account management.

When you first mention medical communications to people it’s not uncommon to be met with an enquiring look, and if I’m honest when looking for new opportunities and first considering a role within a MedComms agency I wasn’t 100% sure myself of what this involved.

What I found was an industry that is exciting and challenging and provides strong development potential for people from a diverse range of backgrounds. Although from a scientific background myself, my previous professional experience had not been in the medical or pharmaceutical field. However, I quickly learned that despite the initially daunting prospect, the Medical Communications community is a supportive and progressive network that takes into account a wide range of transferable skills.

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Amy is one of the newest members of the Medical Writing team at Synergy Vision. She sheds light on what it is like to work there and her experience in the first few weeks. [Read more on Synergy Vision’s company Blog… ]

Erica Brockmeier, now an Associate Medical Writer for Prime Global, writes that “finding your path involves trial and error, a willingness to step outside your comfort zone, and the confidence to go forward without a perfect plan. There’s certainly no ‘typical’ way to finding your own career path. I hope that examples like mine can inspire you to take those crucial first steps on your own path.” [Read more on NatureJobs Blog…]

Amy Holloway has recently started as a Trainee Medical Writer at Caudex…

After I completed my PhD in Medical Sciences, I knew that I didn’t belong in a lab – I was one of those people that enjoyed collating all my research in writing my thesis than actually doing lab work. So when I finished, I looked for job that would allow me to use my scientific knowledge and to keep up-to-date with scientific developments. Working as an editor for a science journal ticked these boxes for a time, but eventually I wanted something with more variety, greater opportunity for progression and faster pace. Medical writing was something I’d heard about at various career events as I was completing my PhD, so I started looking into opportunities. After successful completion of a writing test and an interview (accompanied by an on-site test), I excitedly (and with a healthy dose of trepidation!) accepted a trainee medical writer positon with Caudex.

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Kieran Milward has recently started out as an Account Co-Ordinator at Caudex…

Starting a new job can be a nerve jangling experience, especially if you are heading into a new field, like I was. Coming in from a journalistic and more media based client service background, I had little to no knowledge of how the MedComms world turned, I wasn’t really sure what to expect. Would I be expected to know any science? (Looking back at my C in GCSE with particular trepidation!) Would I be diving straight in to client facing situations?

As it turns out, I had no reason to be fretful at all and I was staggered by the amount of detail and planning that goes into inducting new starters at Caudex. It is certainly not a level of support and learning that I had ever encountered before when starting a new job.

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